In Increments Of Years

Like any good gardener I started clearing and planting around the perimeter of a construction zone from the beginning. That was six years ago.

In all that time, the amount of clearing probably far exceeded the amount of planting that has been done and I have done a lot of planting.

I had an ally in my gardening schemes. Nature's abundance and abhorrence of bare ground was put to use. I also had the advantage of 25 years of previous gardening that had introduced a great diversity of plants in a relatively small area.

As I cleared ground and planted closer and closer to the construction zone, nature followed right behind me filling things back in.

Six years later the plantings have reached right up to the cozy cabin.

And six years later the service entrance stairs are finally getting painted. Today the railings and pickets were completed. Next the decks and stair treads need to be power washed then painted with a deck stain.

When the cozy cabin was completed in year four and all the digging for the utility infrastructure was finished, gardening began in earnest. Major clearing had given way to editing out a number of nature's offerings.

My efforts have been rewarded in more ways than just floral abundance. See that brown stripe in the forest beneath the utility lines. That is how the electric company clears things. Who ever was spraying the herbicide this summer noticed something was different near the cute little cabin. They stopped spraying just ten feet from the garden's lower boundary.

Nature's abundance and abhorrence of bare ground is still being put to use. The gardener is just exerting more control over what is allowed to stay.

An actual garden has begun to take shape. Objet de's are migrating out into the gardens.

Today the portal got another coat of a different colored paint. It is the Marigold of the living room walls in the cozy cabin. Why buy more paint when I have plenty colors to chose from? I think it stands out much mo betta now.

Nature has been so generous with filling in behind my clearing and editing that I can contemplate yanking out this magnificent ironweed one day soon because I think it will eventually be in the wrong place. I've tried several times now and ironweed does not transplant well.

In increments of years a garden in a tall flower meadow has formed. Buried beneath it is another garden planted for winter interest. In another six years that other garden will have risen to stand with the tall flower meadow.

In increments of each year the vision of a garden is made real.